(6) Across the state, older adults, people with disabilities, and families rely on services provided through multiple state entities, including, but not limited to, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Social Services, the California Department of Aging, the Department of Rehabilitation, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the Department of Insurance, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the State Department of Education.

(7) Despite the programs and services administered by a range of state departments, families struggle to weave together services and finance care in the hopes of helping loved ones remain at home. Individuals and their families do not know where to turn for help or how to pay for services. When help is finally found, many people are bounced between programs with little assurance that their needs will be met.

(8) California is woefully unprepared to care for this growing and increasingly diverse demographic. California cannot meet the workforce needs of older adults and people with disabilities, with a growing shortage of paraprofessionals and professionals needed to provide culturally competent care to an increasingly diverse population.

(9) The AARP Public Policy Institute reports that in 2015, California’s 4.5 million unpaid family caregivers provided approximately $57 billion worth of unpaid care, yet often without the necessary training and support.

(10) As the population ages, the demand for healthcare, long-term services and supports, affordable housing, accessible transportation, oral healthcare, mental healthcare, and other services will continue to outpace supply unless there is intentional leadership and action.

(11) Recent polling data shows that more than two-thirds of likely voters feel the state is not prepared to address the healthcare and social support needs of its fast-growing older adult population. Nearly 9 out of 10 voters say it is important for the state to have a master plan to invest in services that allow older adults to age in the place that they prefer.

(12) Numerous entities have issued reports calling for system change, including the Little Hoover Commission in both 1996 and 2011, the Strategic Planning Framework for an Aging Population, a report prepared in response to Chapter 948 of the Statutes of 1999, the Assembly Committee on Aging and Long-Term Care in 2006, and the Senate Select Committee on Aging and Long-Term Care in 2015. Despite hopeful intentions, none of these efforts led to meaningful change.

(13) The 2015 report by the Senate Select Committee on Aging and Long-Term Care, “A Shattered System: Reforming Long-Term Care in California” identified a number of system challenges including system fragmentation, lack of access to services, workforce challenges and cultural competency, and a crumbling infrastructure.

(14) According to the 2017 Long-Term Services & Supports State Scorecard, the highest-performing states all have one thing in common: a commitment to a clear and strategic plan that guides thoughtful investments as part of an integrated and responsive approach to serving older adults and people with disabilities. As examples, Connecticut, Washington, and Minnesota have outlined clear strategies with a broad framework for systems improvement. Policymakers and elected officials in these states have collaborated in developing a vision with specific benchmarks and goals that serve as the foundation for achieving broad transformation.

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this act that a Master Plan for an Aging California is developed that empowers all Californians to age with dignity, choice, and independence.

SEC. 2.

Chapter 13 (commencing with Section 9800) is added to Division 8.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:

9805.

(a) The Aging Czar shall, with the assistance of the Aging Task Force, work with representatives from impacted state departments and with stakeholders, as described in Section 9810, to identify the policies and priorities that need to be implemented in California to prepare for the aging of its population and to develop a master plan for aging.

(b) The master plan shall propose how, at a minimum, the state should accomplish all of the following:

(1) Expand access to coordinated, integrated systems of care.

(2) Strengthen access to long-term services and supports (LTSS).

(3) Prepare families to plan and pay for LTSS.

(4) Support California’s family caregivers.

(5) Increase access to oral healthcare.

(6) Develop affordable housing options.

(7) Enhance access to transportation.

(8) Develop a culturally competent paraprofessional and professional workforce.

(10) Streamline state administrative structures to improve service delivery.

9810.

Under the leadership of the Aging Czar, the Task Force shall develop and implement a process to solicit input from a wide variety of stakeholders, and shall convene community-specific public forums to gather information on the impact on the community of California’s aging population.